Date confirmed for live television broadcast of musical Rent

Fox will broadcast the musical live in 2019

It has been announced that FOX will broadcast the musical Rent live on television in January 2019.

The network unveiled the broadcast date for their latest live musical: Sunday 27^th January 2019.

The live musical production of #RENT to air January 2019 on FOX! https://t.co/p4aPJiTTJK pic.twitter.com/JcKvrPHuay

— RENT on FOX (@RENTonFOX) September 25, 2017

Jonathan Larson's musical is a re-imagining of Puccini's "La Bohème," and is set in New York, telling the story of seven artists trying to make it in the city. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1996, and came to the West End in 1998. Bruce Guthrie directed a UK touring production of Rent last year staring Lucie Jones and Layton Williams. The musical features the songs "Seasons of Love", "Another Day" and "Take Me or Leave Me".

Previous musicals broadcast live by FOX include Grease: Live, and later this year A Christmas Story: The Musical starring Maya Rudolph and Matthew Broderick.

It is not yet clear whether the broadcast will be made available in the UK.

Casting and a creative team for Rent is yet to be announced, however film, television and theatre producer Marc Platt - responsible for taking Wicked to Broadway - will produce the TV special.

In December 2016, NBC broadcast a production of Hairspray live, starring Kristin Chenoweth and Ariana Grande and in 2015, ITV produced a live broadcast of The Sound of Music featuring Kara Tointon.